Welcome back to Buy & Sell, where this week’s theme is… Prospect-a-palooza! Which is a fun time of year, but I’m a little bummed out because I’d rather complain about all of the third base busts, but maybe I’ll save some of that spiel for next week, because this week’s got intrigue! Speed! And me making some very bold predictions. On to the list!
BUY
10-team
Maikel Garcia (3B, Kansas City Royals)
If he was your plan for speed, he’s been Maikilling you softly. Yes, I know he was a top 100 pick, and in later drafts going as top 60. I also know that as of this writing, he has 4 stolen bases… and 3 caught stealing. Which is a good part of why enthusiasm for the speedster, who is hitting a cromulent but frankly underwhelming .282 with 3 HR and 4 SB, with 17 RBI and 21 runs in 175 PA, is wearing thin, which is why you may have a limited opportunity to buy low. But if you drafted him for stolen bases, well, you probably are going to need reinforcements. He went from an incredible 37 SB out of 39 attempts (95%) in 2024 to a merely passable 23 SB out of 32 attempts in 2025 (72%), so the fact he’s now at 57% is… not great. But what if I told you he actually doesn’t need stolen bases to be a major fantasy asset? Time to take the Red Hot Pill. Mmm… cinnamony.
This week he’s been on fire, hitting .435 with 10 hits and an excellent 3/1 BB/K ratio in 26 PA. True, no homers, no stolen bases (one caught stealing, though). But despite the lack of pop, this is legit with a .374 xwOBA over his last 50 PA, over 100 points up from his .272 mark in his previous 50 PA. But it’s the underlying data where I see him as transitioning to more of a pure hitter. Why? Because while he’s managed to maintain the same elite whiff rates, the power is growing. Yes, really. The slight uptick in barrel rate and slight downtick in EV/HardHit arguably cancel each other out, but what he is doing this year is lifting the ball more and pulling more of his flyballs, hitting an actually above average 20% mark, up from a 16% mark in 2025. Yes, I’m actually excited about this.
But why? Because remember, this is a guy who makes a LOT of contact. That’s a lot more pulled flyballs, the best kind of contact for someone with fringy raw power (110 max eV) to be a 20+ HR threat. Oh, and while everyone seems to have forgotten, Kansas City moved in and shortened its walls… I know it hasn’t led to a significant impact yet, but I’m confident it will as things warm up and those flyballs fly further. He’s already rocking a .295 xBA, but I see him as a legitimate .300 20+ HR bat… with any stolen bases a bonus. That may very well be still among the top 3B around, mostly because, well, almost every other hot corner hitter stinks now.
J.J. Bleday (OF, Cincinnati Reds)
Look y’all. I know I keep writing about him. And he keeps getting better, somehow. .291 with 4 homers looks nice, but an insane .359 xBA and .695 xSLG with no discernible flaw. Bat speed is high, barrel rate is high, walk rate is very high, pulled FB% of 31% is very very high, home ballpark is very good. The main knock against him is a small sample size, and I guess he doesn’t run much? But yeah, this is crazy. I managed to buy him in nearly all of my trade leagues, but I just won him in my PL Legacy league with a bid of $1. Baseball is weird.
Honorable Mention: Dillon Dingler (C, Detroit Tigers) – You stupid Dingler! You made me look bad! OOGA BOOGA! Yeah, the last time I called him a must-buy, he responded with a massive slump. I remain unmoved in my strong buy position, and his expected stats are mostly unmoved with a .298 xBA and .568 xSLG. Aside from that pesky homer, I see a golden buy-low opportunity.
Honorable Mention: Travis Bazzana (2B, Cleveland Guardians) – Well, I didn’t expect the bat to be very impactful, with neither very impressive power nor bat ability, but I (and most of us) didn’t think he’d be so aggressive on the basepaths so early on. In not even two weeks, with 7 SB, he’s nearly doubled the SB count of Maikel Garcia. Take him for the bags and consider any other offense gravy.
12-team
Henry Bolte (OF, Athletics)
Sure, the fact that the game of his call-up he was benched isn’t great. Or that his name isn’t pronounced “Bolt” but actually like “Boltay,” which may remind you of Volpe. But this power/speed threat should be better than that! For one, he’s already earned more WAR than Lawrence Butler, despite riding the bench (Butler has -0.5 WAR on the season).
There are a lot of questions about Bolte’s playing time, which aren’t exactly answered yet, as he sat vs. a righty in the first game and started against a lefty in his second game. But I’m hanging this aggressive buy call on a prediction that Lawrence Butler, despite his long-term deal, is not as safe in the role as many assume. With his poor offense and disappointing defense, he’s amassed -0.5 WAR this season. Not only does Bolte offer a more enticing power/speed combo, but he’s also noted for being a plus defender. I’m hoping life finds a way for Bolte.
A.J. Ewing (2B/OF, New York Mets)
He needs his obligatory 12-team shoutout because he’s getting gobbled up in most formats, and certainly any deeper formats. While Ewing may not have double-digit pop, which is why I’d rather roll on the upside of Bolte despite the higher risk, Ewing has the potential to be one of the few SB guys this year that doesn’t also tank your batting average, and hey, that does make a difference.
Mark Vientos (1B/3B, New York Mets)
He is now muy muy bientos. Don’t look now, but the volatile Vientos is now slotting in regularly for the unexpectedly dilapidated Mets lineup, and in the cleanup spot. Not only that, he’s been hitting much better as of late. In fact, his preposterous .487 rolling xwOBA over his past 50 PA is the most improved in baseball (up from an ugly .219 mark). There will probably be more swings, but the skills are looking good, and I want to bet on him while the weather is heating up. I’m actually starting him over Machado in one league right now.
15-team
Zack Gelof (2B/OF, Athletics)
It’s possible the expert’s choir had already been singing for him, and I’m singing Geloff-key. Gelof had my attention in April because he had a very interesting spring training in which he did not strike out, but a demotion followed by riding the pine killed that early enthusiasm. But sure enough, I was on to something, as Gelof has indeed succeeded in maintaining a lower K% of 25%. Now I know for most hitters that’s not really low at all, but I think it’s notable considering that his rate was 27% in his best year before ballooning to 34% in 2024 and 46% in a smaller sample in 2025. I’m also quite encouraged by a significant increase in his PullAir%, which is a strong 26% after averaging a more pedestrian 17% over his previous 3 seasons. I see 20 HR upside here, and I also expect more stolen bases with his 94th percentile sprint speed. I think pound for pound I’d rather have this profile than Jeff McNeil or Cole Young since that home ballpark should help him a lot if he can maintain these gains.
Angel Martínez (2B/OF, Cleveland Guardians)
Just when you thought he was gone, the fallen Angel has returned. It perhaps shouldn’t be surprising that he’s not the one who got the boot, as he’s been pulling his weight plenty still with a shocking 7 HR and 8 SB in just 143 PA. At least that’s shocking if you ever looked at his Statcast page last year, where he finished the season near the bottom of the league in xBA and xSLG. But yeah, that’s why you don’t give up on 24-year-old sophomore hitters. I do think he’s still overperforming a bit and not a 100% regular, but he can easily reach 20/20 despite that and be one of the sneakiest power/speed plays this year.
Honorable Mention: Jake McCarthy (OF, Colorado Rockies) – You may have sworn him off after his awful April, but he’s hit an excellent .333 with 2 HR, 1 SB, and 10 RBI over 24 AB the past two weeks and is earning regular run, though I wish he’d run more regularly, as he’s only stolen 2 bases in the past 21 days.
Deep Leagues
José Tena (2B/3B, Washington Nationals):
After a complete washout in 2025, he’s back to what made him interesting in 2024, which was hard contact (55% HardHit%, 93 mph avg EV, and 11% Barrel%). While he’s hitting .273 with 2 homers, some stolen bases should also come. He’s playing regularly, and 3B is bad enough that he’ll probably outperform some of the other options you’re still trotting out there, and I just got him in a 30-team dynasty.
Zach Cole (OF, Houston Astros)
Look, odds are he flames out fast given his awful 20% SwStr% and somehow even more horrific 40% CSW% (because he’s too passive on strikes). But it’s worth noting that while his HardHit% is down this year, he hit 114 mph last year, and his bat speed is actually up to an excellent 76.5% and increases in all his bat speed metrics, including a 54% Ideal Attack Angle and a 60% FastSwing%. And as far as metrics that are less granular, his Pull Air% is way up to an excellent 29%, so he could at least have a few weeks of being like Murakami-lite. If I needed lightning in a bottle over stability, I’d roll with him in 15-teamers.
Gage Workman (3B, Detroit Tigers)
This is a great opportunity to Gage your waiver wire talent. This may be my favorite sleeper, though it seems, based on claims in other leagues, that I’m not as sneaky clever as I thought. The journeyman hasn’t done much in the majors, but seemed to have a big breakthrough this year in the minors, hitting a fantastic .358 with 4 homers and 12 SB in 150 PA, and note that unlike Bolte, this was in the more pitcher-friendly International League. But what really got me going was seeing that he finally lowered his K% down to a reasonable mark of 23%, supported by a solid CSW% of 26%, after years of K rates above 30%. Not only that, he set a MaxEV that demolished his previous bests, at 115 mph. That’s 4 mph better than his previous best of 111 mph. And while he’s 3B, if you play in a weird league where minor league game eligibility counts like my home league, he has Ezequiel Duran-like eligibility. I’ve seen enough to think he’s the 3B of the future and present for Detroit. These were some bold takes, I hope they Work man.
Honorable Mention: Nick Castellanos (OF, San Diego Padres) – Had a dreadful start, but his bat has started to pick up and so has the playing time, and while most of his stats look meh, one stands out… an incredible 39% Pull Air% (double his career 17%) rate. Maybe it’s a fluke, but worth an NL-only spec, as his peripherals mostly seem better than last year, and he still hit 17 dingers that year.
SELL
10-team
Salvador Perez (C, Kansas City Royals)
You gotta love Perez for having multiple years of looking like he’s done in the first few months before proving the doubters wrong. But look, age is undefeated, and it seems to have finally gotten its hooks in, and this time, the summer might not bring salvation to Salvador. Well the good news is that at least he’s provided pop, with 6 homers, just one less than Cal Raleigh (oof). But Perez’s underlying stats are suffering a death from a thousand cuts, with his barrel% down, HardHit% & MaxEV down, K% up, you name it. Though perhaps the most noticeable difference is the more precipitous drop in his typically great Pull Air% (24% career%), which this year is down to just 16%, the first time he’s merely average. I’ll admit I didn’t know about his Pull Air% tendencies until now, but now I’m sad.
Given that Statcast doesn’t factor that in, and also doesn’t factor in sprint speed (so slow guys have overheated xStats & vice versa), it’s really not good that Perez’s expected stats also stink. I guess they’re still better than his .193 AVG and .335 SLG%, since it’s a .211 xBA and .375 xSLG, but in a year of great catchers, that’s still not encouraging. I mean, his speed is also down to 24 ft/sec, which is 1st percentile, so it’s probably just homers or singles at this point. You could maybe try to flip him in a trade since there are probably still Salvy believers, and you can reference his slow starts in the past few years. But look, a catcher with his profile and massive career workload was never supposed to age well, and that he’s done it this long is basically a miracle. I’d definitely try to see if I could use his name value to score a less heralded Dingler or even Jeffers.
Dishonorable Mention: Bryan Reynolds (OF, Pittsburgh Pirates) – Look, he’s okay, but really just okay. I actually thought he might be a buy-low this year, as he underperformed his hard-hitting ways, but he’s just not enough for 10-teamers, and his xwOBA rolling performance is in a downtrend. That’s a wrap on Reynolds.
12-team
Matt Chapman (3B, San Francisco Giants)
He’s been less Chapman and more Chap Lipman. That’s right, the guitarist in Doug’s fictional band “The Beets”… because Matt’s bat has been championship dream-Killer Tofu. Yes, I’m sure the kids will get this very relatable reference. I’m turning 39 today and my back hurts. Anyway, the obvious hope is that this is just a rough stretch for the 33-year-old, as he’s been prone to those in the past as well. But last year, even in his bad stretches, he still hit the ball hard, and this year he’s doing none of that. Behind the ugly .228/.307/.310 line with just 1 measly homer in 176 PA (and no stolen bases!), Statcast actually thinks he’s gotten a tad lucky, with a .203 xBA and .284 xSLG. Yuck.
Need some optimism? Okay. He does still have 76 mph bat speed, which is still great and actually better than he had last year. So it’s not like he’s simply withering away. And the contact rate is roughly the same, and that’s often the straw that breaks the camel’s back. AND if you look at his 2026 spray chart, he has 6 warning track shots that were mostly doubles that probably could’ve carried out in warmer weather. Dang, maybe I got too good at optimism. But back to realism now: This seems to be a continued decline from a 2024 year that was a sort of dead cat bounce. And this year, not only is the contact weak, but he’s hitting it into the ground a lot, with a terrible 39% topped% rate. Am I going to bet that Gage Workman will be a better 3B the rest of the year than Matt Chapman? No, not with 1:1 odds, but I’d probably take their line (if I were a betting man).
So what should you do? Well, it depends on your patience profile, but more so on your alternatives. Like, I’d still rather have Bo Bichette, and some other struggling 3B, but yeah, I think I’d slide Isaac Paredes and probably even Mark Vientos ahead of him, and as the less patient type, I’d rather chase that than wait for a trend to turn that seems to show no signs of turning. Cut in 10-team leagues and consider cutting in 12-team AVG leagues.
Taylor Ward (OF, Baltimore Orioles)
I like pop, so just like the singer, I prefer the old Taylor. It seems nobody is talking about him as a bust, I guess because he’s been hitting for a better average? But he has just ONE home run. And the average is just .265. I’d worry, as the bat speed is notably down and terrible (4th percentile), leading to poor 25th percentile HardHit% and Barrel% rates. And even his Pull Air%, which is a decent 17% over his career, is down to a below-average 14%. He has no speed, so his only value is in OBP formats, where his 100th percentile walk rate is keeping him afloat. But outside of that, I just don’t see much difference between him and the homerless Colt Keith, and between the two, I’m actually a bit more encouraged by the underlying numbers of Keith. Time to Ward off this bad juju.
Dishonorable Mention: Lawrence Butler (OF, Athletics) – Butler has continued to be just dreadful, hitting just .138 with no homers, no SB, and no RBI in 29 AB the past two weeks. Most think he’ll be in a platoon with Bolte, but I don’t expect it to last long, as -0.5 on the season for a team with hopes of contention just won’t do. He could soon even be a 15-team drop, as he’s not even running… he has no stolen bases in 21 days, and 1 caught stealing. I’d like to Lawrinse my hands of this.
15-team
Josh Bell (1B, Minnesota Twins)
If you’re still rostering him, you’re probably feeling quite Bellicose. He had a hot flare for a week plus in April but has been an absolute zero since then, hitting .164 with 0 homers in 67 AB over the past 21 days… and somehow it’s only been getting worse. At least before, he was hitting weakly but making contact, but this past week the bottom gave out, and he’s struck out 12 times in his past 22 AB… with 0 walks, mind you. The expected stats might not have you panicking, but they’re still weighing in his early numbers and not his recent rolling xwOBA, which has just kept going down, with a .247 xwOBA over his past 50 PA. My one call to optimism I’m only discovering now is that maybe it’s due to growing pains in a significant approach shift, increasing his Pull Air% to a career-best 29% (over double his career mark of 14%). Still, I think first base is deep enough to find something better, since time marches on (painfully) for whom the Bell tolls.
Jacob Young (OF, Washington Nationals)
I had been pretty excited about Young warping into a new player, but sometimes it’s better not to try to reinvent oneself and stay Forever Young. He increased his bat speed, but clocking in just under 70 mph, it’s still not really enough to make any impact as a power bat, just not a zero-power bat. But speaking of speed, the real issue is that with his new lower groundball rate, he’s wasting his 96th percentile sprint speed, as it’s leading to fewer hits and a deep funk. And even when he is on, he’s just not going, with only 2 stolen bases in 3 attempts all year. That really caps his fantasy upside as being merely an NL-only play until something changes.
Dishonorable Mention: Brendan Doyle (OF, Colorado Rockies) – Forget what you paid or what his ADP was. He’s a backup now, and unlike McCarthy, this backup is showing no signs of getting back. I’d be interested again if he were traded to a more competent team.
Deep Leagues
Kyle Isbel (OF, Kansas City Royals)
Did you miss the opportunity to sell high on him after his first two obviously unsustainable hot weeks? If so, that’s a shame (I also tried to trade him but failed). But he’s a bad hitter, and while he still plays, he’s been hitting around the Mendoza line since week 3, and it’s time to declare this area bare and move on West. I’d gladly swap him for a Yohendrick Piñango, Zach Cole, Leody Taveras, probably even a Nick Castellanos. Not only has he only had 1 SB in the past 21 days, but he has also only had 2 RBI. TWO! You could swap Young and Isbel since Isbel has better surface numbers, but I still have more hope for Young.
Dishonorable Mention: Victor Caratini (C/1B, Minnesota Twins) – What seemed to be a golden opportunity for increased playing time quickly turned sour, and his normally solid AVG is below the Mendoza line. This wasn’t 24-karat gold for deep leagues but just 0-karatini.
